Nasa to send 10 agents to every polling station, Raila says

In the past, he said, they only sent agents in their strongholds and swing zones.

Nasa will send 10 party agents to every polling station in the country, co-principal Raila Odinga told a gathering of youth on Tuesday.

The ODM leader told representatives from the Bunge la Mwananchi at Orange House: “We have the numbers. We have what it takes to win the elections.”

He added: “At every polling station, we will have a team of not less than 10 people. Every polling station must be manned and we must have somebody there whose telephone number is known at the secretariat for daily communication with the centre.”

During the 2013 elections, Kenya had 33,000 polling stations and Mr Odinga’s side, Cord, ignored most stations perceived to be controlled by rivals. The law had proposed that the number of centres increase to 57,000.

If Nasa were to send 10 agents to every polling station, it must prepare a war chest to pay more than 300,000 watchers. The watchers will also check those who haven’t voted to convince them to do so. “The team with the register of voters in that station, will check who has voted and who has not. Those who have not will be brought to vote,” said the ODM leader. The Bunge la Mwananchi representatives endorsed him for the Nasa presidential ticket.

A MEMORANDUM

They also handed him a 10-point memorandum calling for fair nomination, inclusion in campaign teams, civic education and vote protection.

Mr Odinga said his party was negotiating with other Nasa members to conduct joint nominations in Nairobi and Mombasa.

He also reiterated that they will establish a parallel tallying centre. The electoral commission has made it clear it is only they who can announce results. “Political parties are allowed to have tallying centres, I have been hearing them say. That is allowed all over the world,” said the former Prime Minister.

He added: “That must be done in this country. There is no negotiation on that. Once the results are announced, they become public document.”

The idea of a parallel tallying centre is for the Opposition to verify the figures announced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

On March 25, Deputy President William Ruto said tallying was the duty of the electoral officers and those mimicking that were afraid of losing.